The swift growth in student debt and delinquencies has come into the spotlight in recent years. Student loans were the only type of debt that continued to increase during the Great Recession.

Outstanding student loan balances increased by $20 billion during the first quarter of 2013, to a total of $986 billion as of March 31. Some 16.2% of Americans have student loans and carry an average balance of $24,810.

Tami Luhby is a senior writer at CNNMoney and covers income inequality, state fiscal problems, unemployment, housing policy and other economic issues. Luhby previously covered personal finance for Newsday and banking for Crain's New York Business.